Shadows Of The Past
by I Laugh at ur Pain
Summary: I'm back and this time on my own. Kori leaves Mr. Smith with something he wants. A few years later Mr. Smith finds her and has a few tricks up his sleeve. Rated for language, some blood. SR manly. RR please.
1. Located

SHADOWS OF THE PAST

Starfire--Kori AndersRobin--Richard Grayson

Cyborg--Victor StoneBeast Boy--Garfield (Gar) Logan

Raven--Rachel RothBumblebee--Karen Beecher

Red X--Xavier RedBad guy--Mr. Smith

Chapter 1--Located

"It's been 3 years," a menacing voice said, breaking the silence.

The voice belonged to an equally menacing person, tall, dark, and known to every police department and gang as Mr. Smith, the mob boss. Seated around him, were 5 fidgeting men. They had been brought to this conference room on urgent notice, though what it was about, they didn't know. The room was dark except for the blue light coming from the large digital map on the wall, where many major cities were pin-pointed in red. Other than that, all the room held was a long table, where everyone was seated.

"It's been 3 years," Mr. Smith said again. "3 long years of tracking, planning, and searching." The men around him shifted uneasily in their seats. "Can anyone tell me why that is?"

"M-Mr. Smith, sir," a trembling voice said from his right. "I-it's been v-very difficult to track her, when she keeps moving b-before we get a lock."

Mr. Smith growled and slammed his fist on the table, shattering his coffee cup. "You're the best goddamn trackers in the world, and it's taking you 3 years to find _one girl!_"

He sighed in frustration before ringing a bell. A stiff and elderly man by the name of Wintergreen came into the room, immediately replacing Mr. Smith's broken coffee cup.

"Do you all remember why it is we're looking for this girl?" Mr. Smith growled out. "We're looking for this girl because before she ran away with all the damn cash in the damn safe, she took something else too. Something that, if found, could put us all in one big pile of shit. All our names, our locations, and records on us, that if the police saw them, would blow their goddamn minds away! So why do you think it's appropriate to sit around on your lazy asses all day while every second that goes by brings us closer to a life sentence in some hell hole jail!"

He paused to pick a piece of lint off his jacket shoulder before continuing, much calmer. "Luckily for all you lazy shitheads, Mr. Payne here has brought me good news." The man named Mr. Payne smiled smugly. Mr. Smith turned to him. "So what brings us all together today, Mr. Payne?"

"I've found the girl. Her current location is Gotham City."

"And so the plan is set in motion," Mr. Smith said, rising from his chair. "Luckily for you, you still have a chance to redeem yourselves." He walked over to the digital map and pressed the red dot marked on Gotham. The screen instantly zoomed in on the chosen point, showing a mansion located on the edge of the beach. "All you have to do is break in, find the files, and get out."

"And what if the girl resists?" a man named Sting said.

"If the girl resists, Mr. Sting, you have only one option, and it's a very simple one; kill her."

WELL THERE IT IS. IT'S A TOTALLY NEW STORY AND IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE FIRST THREE STORIES. PLEASE SEND IN YOUR REVIEWS AND THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY THAT SENT IN THEIR REVEIWS FOR THE FIRST THREE STORIES. Luv, I Laugh at ur Pain


	2. Calm Waters

Chapter 2--Calm Waters

Emerald eyes narrowed in concentration and a sigh escaped from her lips. Kori Grayson, the famous fashion designer, was having trouble. She was supposed to have finished the designs for the dress around six hours ago, but she couldn't figure out how to arrange things so the wedding dress would be "outstandingly beautiful and unique," or as her assistant Colleen put it, "to take attention away from the screwed up cake." Her pencil was still posed in the same spot that it had been an hour ago, and nothing except for a basic outline was on the page. Maybe she could blame her designer's block on Richard, since he had been occupying her thoughts for the entire day. She had been married to the man for almost a year now, and since she was nearing her 22nd birthday, she had thought of the perfect present. The only thing that troubled her now was how to tell him.

She wanted kids. She sighed again and tried to clear her head, but it proved too difficult and she dropped her pencil in frustration, leaning back in her chair. Colleen noticed and came over to her.

"Kor, you feeling alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Listen, I'm gonna take a break and go home. Do you think you can finish up?" Kori said, checking her cell phone before putting it in her purse.

"Yeah, I'll finish it up and send it over to Donna. Did you have an idea of what you wanted?" Colleen asked, sitting down on the plush chair and taking up the pencil.

"Nope, I can't put anything on there. You make it up."

"Alright, see you tomorrow Kor," Colleen called.

Kori hastily pushed her way through the glass double doors and climbed into her silver Mercedes convertible, glad to finally be rid of her job. Starting the car, she turned the radio up as loud as she could. Maybe it would help drown out everything else. She stopped by Starbucks on her way home, and the grocery store to pick up a few things. Thankfully her beach-side mansion was on a private drive, so she didn't have to worry about other cars. Pulling into the driveway at last, she climbed out of the car, calling for the housekeeper to unload the trunk.

"Honey I'm home!" she shouted.

There was a loud thump on the floor above before Richard trudged down the stairs, rubbing his eyes and yawning. Apparently he had been out late again. He smiled and dipped her in a passionate kiss before walking into the huge kitchen and grabbing a bowl of cereal. It was only when Kori sat down to join him that she saw the large white bandage wrapped around his upper arm.

"Oh my God, Richard, what happened?" she asked, reaching out to feel the wound.

"Oh, just got in a fight with some drunk at the bar last night," Richard replied carelessly. (Richard's Nightwing but Kori doesn't know.)

"Richard, you can't keep doing this to yourself!" Kori exclaimed, pointing to his arm for extra reassurance.

"Kori, I'm fine. Honestly," Richard said seriously.

"Yeah, I know, but still…I worry about you."

Richard smiled and pecked her on the lips before returning to his cereal.

"So, how was today?" Richard asked.

"Ugh, it was a nightmare. I have nothing, nothing at all," Kori said, throwing her hands up in the air. "I blame you."

"What? Why?" Richard asked, looking surprised.

"You asked me what I wanted for my birthday and it's been keeping me up all night because of it."

"Oh…so have you figured it out?"

"Yup," Kori said uneasily, wringing her hands together. "Richard…I wanna have kids."

Richard stopped and started choking on his spoon. Look's like another trip to the hospital.

WELL WHAT DO YOU THINK? ONCE AGAIN THE CHAPTERS ARE SORT AND ALL, BUT PLEASE DON'T SEW! ANYWAY THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY THAT SENT IN THEIR REVIEWS AND TO EVERYBODY THAT DIDN'T SEND IN THEIR REVEIWS, PLEASE DO. Luv, I Laugh at ur Pain


	3. Blackmail

Chapter 3--Blackmail

Sighing, Kori plopped herself down on a chair and rubbed her eyes. She had just gotten back from the hospital, and it was 11:30 at night. If she counted it right, she had been up for almost 2 days now.

"Mrs. Kori, a letter came for you while you were gone," Rosita, the housekeeper, said, handing her the letter. Then she disappeared to someplace else in the house, probably looking for something to clean.

"Ok, thanks Rosita. You can go home if you want to," Kori called back. Five minutes later, the lights in the other rooms turned off and the door opened and shut. Kori was alone now. Her eyebrows furrowed when she saw the blank envelope. There was no return address or stamp. It was obviously hand-delivered by the person who wrote it. She ripped open the letter and unfolded it, before re-reading it 3 times. This couldn't be happening to her.

_Dear Mrs. Anders,_

_Hello again. It's been a long time since we've last seen each other. I hope you haven't forgotten about me. You have something special of mine, and I want it back. Those files you took, before you left? Remember those? Well, Kori, if I don't have them back by 10:30 tomorrow night, we're gonna have a little problem, you and me. I'll have to come and personally take them from you, and you don't want that, do you? You will go to Warehouse #6321 on Pier 15 tomorrow night and you will drop them off in an orange envelope under the lamppost. If I don't have them in my hand by then, or if you call the police, you and everything you hold dear will cease to exist. Think about it, Kori. We'll keep in touch._

_Signed, M.S._

M.S. She knew that name anywhere. But how the heck did they find her! She was always careful, changing her address and phone number every two months. She always changed her license plate and her job every time she moved too. Apparently, she had stayed in one place too long. Getting up, she ran to the door, hoping that by some miracle Rosita hadn't left yet. The driveway was empty; she was alone. She sighed and slumped against the doorframe, holding a hand to her forehead in grief. Well, it didn't matter now. They knew where she was, and it wasn't like she could just pack up and leave. She was a famous fashion designer now, and she was married to frickin Richard Grayson for God's sake! Yeah, like nobody would notice she was gone!

"Damnit," she muttered, closing the door. She really screwed herself this time. She married a frickin icon, one of the biggest damn celebrities in the world! She loved the man to death, but Richard was really getting her in a lot of trouble lately. Well, there wasn't much she could do now. It was either return the files or find herself in the city morgue.

"There's gotta be another way out of this," Kori said to herself. She couldn't give them the files. They were the only thing keeping her safe the past three years. They had gotten a hold of her once two years ago, when she was living in Malibu. She threatened she would hand them over to the police if they tried anything. Those files saved her ass right then, because next day she moved and they hadn't found her again for two years. Well, she couldn't play the same trick twice. "I just need to get some sleep. I can't think when I'm running on coffee."

Kori locked all the doors and barred all the windows before trudging upstairs, doing the same on that floor. She carefully climbed into her and Richard's king-sized bed, hugging the pillows close to her. She could still smell Richard's cologne on them, and it offered her some comfort. Falling asleep almost instantly, the last thing she remembered thinking about was how great it would be to have kids.

WELL ONCE AGAIN SHORT CHAPTER, THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY THAT SENT IN THEIR REVEIWS AND ARE SUPPORTING ME AND THE STORY. UMM YA. Luv, I Laugh at ur Pain


	4. Flashbacks

Chapter 4—Flashbacks

_6 year old Kori was hiding in the front hall closet in her parent's mansion. Her mother had told her to hide there when she heard of the man's arrival. Through the small crack in the door, Kori could barely see what was going on outside. Her mother and father were arguing with a man. He was old, maybe in his early 50's, and he didn't look very nice. _

_"The deadline hasn't passed yet!" her father said._

_"Yes, but you've broken the rules, Anders," the man said._

_"What rules? What did we do?" her mother cried._

_"You've been in contact with them," the man said. Kori could tell he was very angry. "You've been feeding them information."_

_Her father turned to her mother. "Why did you do it Renee? We were safe!" _

_"I'm sorry, Michael! I couldn't let this-this thing take her away from us!" _

_"Well, it was your decision. And it was wrong," the man said. He whistled and there was a loud crashing sound. Men with guns rushed into the room and surrounded her parents. The man took a gun out of his coat pocket and pointed it at her mother and father. "The deal's off Anders."_

_Right before he was about to shoot, Kori ran out of the closet and into her mother's arms. "No! Don't hurt mommy and daddy!" she said, crying._

_"What's this Anders?" the man said._

_"Kori, we told to you stay hidden. We told you not to come out!" her mother said. She was crying too._

_"I'm sorry mommy."_

_One of the men came and grabbed Kori out of her mother's arms and took her away to another room. "Mommy!" _

_"Kori! You-you monster! Bring her back!" her mother yelled._

_"You didn't follow the rules," the man said._

_Kori heard two loud bangs. Kicking the man who was holding her in the shin, she ran out into the front hall and screamed. Her parents were lying on the floor, blood coming out from the backs of their heads. Dropping to the floor, Kori screamed and cried. The men around her walked out of the house and into a black van outside. The man who killed her parents looked at her one last time before following after them. Only one man stayed in the room. He was around 22, and he seemed to be the nicest of the group. Sighing, he picked her up and carried her out to the van with him, Kori kicking and screaming._

_"I want my mommy back! I want my daddy back!"_

_Kori was 10 now. She was sitting in her room, meditating. She meditated so she could get the horrible memory of her parent's death out of her head. It never worked. She was disgusted with herself. She was living with the man who killed her parents, the man who took everything away from her. Well, she couldn't say everything. She opened her eyes and looked around her room. There were nice things in her room. Expensive things. Things that Mr. Slade, that was the man's name, had stolen and given to her. Kori was one of them now. She stole things. She hurt other people. But she never did what she was told. She hated Mr. Slade. He was only giving her things because he wanted her to forget. He wanted her to open up to him and serve him. She was one of the best, after all. It was amazing to think that a 10 year old girl was as good as a 25 year old man. She was an expert at what she did. It was because she hated so much. She promised that before she got out of this place, she would kill Mr. Slade. She would get revenge for her parents. Someone knocked on her door. _

_"Come in," she said quietly. Peter, or Mr. Smith as Mr. Slade called him, came in and sat down next to her on the floor. Peter was her best friend out of all of them. He was the one that took her from the house the night her parents were killed. She should have hated him too, but she couldn't. If it wasn't for him, she would be living in an orphanage right now. _

_"Hey Kori," Peter said._

_"Hi," she answered._

_"I brought you something," he said._

_Kori's eyes lit up. Getting something new was one of the only things that made her happy anymore. She loved getting new things. Peter pulled a necklace out of his pocket. The chain was silver, and there were small star-cut emeralds hanging from it. In the middle was a big one. _

_"I thought it would match you eyes," Peter said._

_"Oh, Peter, it's beautiful!" Kori said, going to her vanity mirror._

_Peter helped her put it on. He was right, it did match her eyes. She loved it. "I'm glad I got it for you," Peter said._

_"Thank you Peter," Kori said, hugging him._

_Peter left her room. Kori sat down to meditate again, but she was having a hard time concentrating now. She kept opening her eyes to look at her new necklace. If she ever did get out, she would take Peter with her._

_Kori was 13. She had just had her birthday two days ago. She had gotten a new leather jacket, a rare polar bear skin rug, a new chandelier to put in her bedroom, a diamond-encrusted Ipod nano, and several expensive perfumes. Kori lived the life of luxury. She never had to go to school, since she took private lessons from one of the best tutors in the world, she never had to do any chores, since that was the maid's job, and she always got what she wanted. But there was one problem. Mr. Slade was dead and she didn't kill him. He died of cancer. The one thing she always promised herself she would have, but never got, was out of her reach now. There was nothing left to do. Someone knocked on her door. She knew by now that it was Peter._

_"Hey Kori," Peter said, flopping down on her bed beside her. _

_"Hey," she said. _

_"Listen, I know you're upset, but you need to come outside. You've been cooped up in your room for a week now. You need to find something else to do."_

_"I'm not sad that bastard died!" Kori yelled, sitting up._

_"Kori," Peter warned._

_"I'm glad he's dead! I'm just sad I didn't get to be the one to kill him!" Kori yelled. She ran out of the room. She needed to go to the gym. Maybe that would get her mind off of things. That day, she swore two things: one, she would learn everything that she could from these people. And two, she would get out of this place before her 17th birthday._

_The large bag on her back was heavy, she was tired of running, and she needed a shower, but did that stop her? Nope. Kori was 16 now and one of the best thieves in the world. Nobody could stop her. They'd have to catch her first, and they couldn't even do that. She and Peter just robbed an expensive jewelry store, and they were making a break for it. Peter was trailing behind her. He was in his 40's now, and not quite as fast as he used to be. Kori jumped another building and landed in a roll, before getting back up and sprinting to the edge. Just before she was about to jump, a shadow came up in front of her, knocking her across the roof top. _

_"What the hell?" Kori said, picking herself up. Standing in front of her was a boy around her age, maybe a year or two older. He was wearing black spandex with a blue bird on his chest. He had black spiky hair and a tan, muscular body. She couldn't see his eyes since he was wearing a mask, but she could bet they were probably blue. He was hot. And he was in her way._

_"What do you want?" she asked._

_"You didn't pay for those," the boy said in a deep voice. Was this kid dumb or something? Of course she didn't pay for them!_

_"Yeah, so? What're you gonna do? Talk me to jail?" Kori said, taking off in the other direction. The boy followed after her. He was pretty good. But she was better. _

_"Kori!" she heard Peter yell from behind her. But she couldn't stop now. There was no way she would let that guy catch up to her. She jumped another building and flipped, landing gracefully on her feet. She turned around and watched as the boy did the same, landing in front of her._

_"Who are you?" Kori asked, raising an eyebrow. She was sweating in her black leather suit, but that didn't matter much to her. _

_"They call me Nightwing," the boy said. "Who are you?" _

_"You don't know me?" she asked. Nightwing shook his head. "Well, you're either very brave, or very stupid, because coming after me was a big mistake."_

_Dropping her bag to the ground, she pulled two daggers out of their holsters on her hips and spun them around in her hand. Nightwing looked surprised before pulling a bo-staff out of his belt. Damn, this kid just wouldn't quit. The two teens traded blow for blow, blocking and hitting, until they backed away from each other to see the damage they had done. Kori's only injury was to her female instinct, which screamed at the fact she needed a shower badly. Nightwing had a few cuts on his arms and a small scratch on his cheek. They were both breathing heavily and their muscles were aching. Kori was about to go in for the kill when someone came and hit Nightwing over the head with the butt of their gun. Once Nightwing fell to the floor, she could see Peter looking at her in disappointment. _

_"What?" she asked._

_"You disobeyed me. I know you heard me back there," Peter said, crossing his arms over his chest._

_"I had to keep going! This kid was following me!" she said, pointing to the unconscious teen lying on the rooftop. _

_"Well, don't do it again," Peter said. "Besides, you're making me look bad. Damn, girl, you know how to fight." He smiled and helped Kori pick up the heavy bag._

_"Well, I learned from the best," Kori said. Then they both made their way home._

_Kori was 17 now and it really pissed her off that she hadn't left yet. She promised herself she would have left on the night of her 17th birthday, but it had been almost two months since then. It was probably because of him. Ever since their rooftop chase, Kori couldn't get Nightwing out of her head. Just to clear her thoughts, she decided to take a walk around the mansion. No matter how much she told herself he was an annoying, goody two-shoes jerk, he just wouldn't get off her mind! As she was passing by a door, she heard people talking, and she recognized Peter's voice. This was one of those meetings that she wasn't allowed to be in. Something about her being a girl or some other worthless crap like that. She decided to listen in. _

_"We need to get rid of her," somebody said._

_"Yes, she's starting to figure it out," another one said._

_"Where are we going to send her?" she heard Peter ask._

_"Does it matter? As long as she can't interfere with the plan, we could send her to the bottom of the ocean for all I care! It's not to hard! Strap some cement blocks to her feet and away she goes!" somebody said. It sounded like Slip, one of the older ones. He had never liked her anyway._

_"Kori means a lot to me and I'm not just gonna get rid of her!" Peter yelled._

_Kori gasped; they were getting rid of her? What did she do?_

_"How do we even know she's figured it out?" Peter said._

_Figured out what? What the hell were they talking about?_

_"She saw you opening the package in your bedroom. She's seen the map. She's seen the locations. She knows too much. She could never keep her mouth shut. What we're on the verge of is one of the greatest terrorist acts this country has ever seen! No one can know about this!" Slip said._

_Kori backed away from the door, her hand over her mouth and her eyes wide. She remembered now; seeing the strange vials of liquid in the package, seeing the red dots on all the major cities of the world. They were gonna do something bad; really bad. Kori ran to the suit-up and weapons room. She grabbed her suit, a couple guns and her daggers, and was about to go out of the room when she saw a filing cabinet. Her curiosity got the better of her, and looking through it, she grabbed her file out. She didn't want them anywhere near her records. She also grabbed Slip's, Peter's, Mr. Slade's, and all the leader's folders, though she didn't know why. Running into her room, she grabbed the necklace Peter gave her, her Ipod, a couple changes of clothes, and packed them all into her backpack. Then she jumped out of the window and ran off. She didn't know where she was going, but she was going to start a new life. She promised herself she was gonna break out of that place, and she finally was. Kori was free. Kori was reborn. Kori was…also gonna get the shit beat out of her when they found out what she had done._

WELL THERE IS A LONG CHAPTER, AND THAT CHAPTER WAS ABOUT FLASHBACKS KORI HAD. PLEASE SEND IN YOUR REVIEWS.

Luv, I Laugh at ur Pain


	5. Something Much Better

The next morning when Kori woke up, she was determined. She was going to make sure the files were in a place they couldn't be found, and then she was going to see how Richard was doing. (Remember he choked on his spoon and he's in the hospital now.) Going into her private study, she opened up her desk and started going through all her paperwork.

"Aww, come on, I know it's here _somewhere_," she muttered. "Aha!"

She pulled out the files and made sure everything was in them. Glancing across to her corkboard, she saw an article tacked up on it. She smiled grimly as she remembered what it said.

**MAJOR CITIES POISONED WITH TOXIC GAS**

**As of 1:30 last night, cities all over the world, such as Hong Kong, London, Paris, Tokyo, San Francisco, New York, and Washington D.C. were subjected to Nitric Oxide, a very toxic gas. It is unclear how these poisonous fumes got into the city, but Chief of Police Commissioner Marshall had this to say:**

**"There are no suspects at the moment, but I think we can all classify this as a terrorist-scale act. There were traces of foreign glass in the sewers and some spilled gas, which leads us to believe this was not one of your every day power plant slip-ups. Whoever did this is in high crime." **

**And it will indeed be an event to remember. In total, a little over 9 million people were killed in last night's disaster.**

Kori glared at the files in her hand, wishing she could rip them up and get rid of her memories. She felt responsible for that horrible night. She knew what was going to happen, and she could have said something, but she was too afraid of being found. And 9 million people paid for her stupid little worries. Going to her bookcase, Kori started throwing random books across the room. She cleared the shelf and found her safe in the back of the bookcase. She kept everything important in that safe. She quickly unlocked it and shoved the files inside. Something sparkled in the sun light coming through the windows and caught her eye. She reached inside and pulled out a necklace. It had a silver chain with star-cut emeralds hanging from it. There was a big one in the middle. It was the necklace Peter, or Mr. Smith, gave her. She ran her fingers over the smooth emeralds before putting it around her neck. She closed the safe and covered it up with all the books. Then she walked back into her room and got dressed.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"You know, hospitals smell really weird," Richard said. He was sitting in his hospital bed eating the tub of ice cream Kori brought him and watching TV. "But it's not so bad once you get used to it."

"So, are you feeling better?" Kori asked.

"Yeah, my throat's a little sore, but I'll live," Richard said with a smile.

"That's good. So when are they gonna let you come home?" Kori asked.

"They told me they had to run a few tests on me before they could let me go. Apparently it's time for my check-up. But after that I'm all yours," he said, wiggling his eyebrows up and down.

"You are such a pervert," Kori said, playfully hitting him on the shoulder.

"Oh, which reminds me," Richard said. "I've given it some thought while I was here, and…I think we should."

"Should what?" Kori asked, raising her eyebrow.

"I think we should have kids," Richard said.

Kori's eyes lit up and a big smile was on her face. "Do you really mean it?"

"Yeah," Richard said, smiling.

Kori squealed happily and jumped on top of him, hugging him. She was crying tears of joy. The nurse suddenly came in to take Richard's blood pressure.

"Oh-oh my gosh!" she yelled, thinking they were doing _something else_.

"Wha?" Richard said, seeing her. Kori looked up and saw the nurse. Her face turned as red as a tomato.

"Oh, sorry…I'll just be going now," Kori said.

She climbed off of Richard and kissed him passionately on the lips before leaving the room. The events of last night and that morning seemed like a bad dream.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

**10:28 p.m.** Kori paced around the living room, glancing at the clock every five seconds. She took a shaky breath and wiped the cold sweat from her hands off on her pants. She had two minutes before deadline. To help occupy herself, she sat down on her sofa and grabbed a magazine. Flipping through a couple pages, she stopped when she saw and ad.

**These next few hours might be your last, so hurry up and buy Indulgence cigarettes and liquor! To give you that late night, last minute buzz when you need it most. Indulgence; it's a whole other kind of pleasure.**

Kori closed the magazine and started pacing around the room again. Sighing, she sat down again and turned on the T.V. The news was on.

"Last night, around 4 am, Greg Marley, the founder of Marley Industries, was murdered in his south Gotham home. Police have found evidence of blackmail at the scene of the crime. Now we turn to Rob for the special report."

Kori groaned and turned the T.V. off. Why did everything have to remind her of what she was trying so hard to forget! The chimes on the grandfather clock in the front hall started ringing. Kori's cold sweat started up again. In a couple of minutes, they would know she didn't drop off the files. In a couple of minutes they would be at her door, demanding them. Kori fingered the emerald necklace she was wearing. Her old memories were choking her. Kori ran to the kitchen to get a glass of water. She downed it in one gulp. Panting, she rested her head on the fridge door to calm her heartbeat. A tiny click made her jerk her head up. She whipped around, and only had a second to scream before the large bay windows in the living room exploded. Guys in black suits came swinging into the room from ropes and pulled out machine guns as they rolled across the floor. Kori dropped down onto the linoleum, hoping they hadn't seen her yet. One of them went and unlocked the front door. Heavy footsteps sounded in the front hall. Kori's heartbeat started racing.

"Thank you Mr. Sting," Mr. Smith said. Kori felt a chill go down her spine. "Now, where might our little spitfire Korina be?"

"I don't know, sir. We haven't found her yet. But we will, believe me. Men, secure the perimeter!"

Kori heard heavy feet rush away from the living room. A few vases crashed in the other rooms. All of a sudden she heard a piece of glass crunch on the tile of the kitchen. Kori's breath hitched up in her throat. The barrel of a gun poked out from around the counter. Kori quietly shuffled around to the other side of the counter, trying to stay out of sight. A black boot stopped right beside her hiding place. Kori held a hand over her mouth to help quiet her breathing. She was almost positive that the man heard it, since he stopped and quietly listened. He was about to round the corner and find her, when a voice called him back.

"Mr. Sting, there are other rooms in the house. We need to you check those too."

"Yes sir," Sting said, walking away in the other direction. Kori let out a sigh. That was too close.

Once she was sure everyone had left the room she stood up and looked around, trying to find someplace else to hide. A small flower vase went flying across the room, smashing into a wall. Kori jumped and gasped. Kori's feet were planted on the ground, and she couldn't seem to get them to move. She watched as one of them stood up with another vase in hand. He looked it over before chucking it behind him. It crashed against the wall like the other one did. Kori remembered that being a vase her aunt had given her for her 13th birthday. The man just happened to look up in her direction. He froze with his mouth open. He reached for his gun, and Kori took the opportunity to roll across the floor and stop behind the sofa he was standing in front of. The man finally got his gun loaded, but when he looked back to where Kori should have been, no one was there. Kori silently counted to three before jumping up and round-house kicking the gun out of his hand. He started to yell but she knocked him out before he could finish. Kori grabbed his gun and started heading toward the front door. She was just reaching for the handle when it was blown off of the door. Kori shrieked and turned around, firing randomly. She had killed the guy, but now more of them were running in her direction, following the sound of the gun shots. Kori dropped the empty gun and hid behind the door way. When they came through, she would be ready for them. She hadn't forgotten how to fight.

WHAM! One of them went crashing to the ground. Kori slightly winced at her sore hand but didn't have time to do anything else since more of them were coming through. She round-house kicked one and punched another, but she was too slow for the third. A foot slammed into her chest, knocking the breath out of her. She staggered back and just barely blocked another foot when one of them picked her up and held her over their head, trying to bend her back in half. Kori cried out from the pain and rammed her elbow into his head. He pitched her across the room in retaliation. She slid across two coffee tables, knocking down anything that was on them, and landed on the living room floor near the broken windows. She stood up and dusted herself off, preparing to fight more. Sting came into the room, machine gun in hand. Kori only had a moment to duck before bullets were flying everywhere. More of Smith's men filed into the room, holding pieces of broken furniture. All of them were there now, except for Mr. Smith.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Drawers were emptied and coffee tables were being overturned. Mr. Smith growled and threw a lamp across the room.

"I know they're around here somewhere. Precious Kori wouldn't want them out of her sight, the bitch."

Going over to a bookcase, he started throwing books across the room. One of them was stuck in the wall. Raising his eyebrow, he tugged on it. The bookcase swung open, revealing a hidden passage. Smith smiled before going down it. It was a cave of some sort, hidden underneath the house. Lights started turning on in the cave. There was a huge computer in one corner, with at least ten different screens. In the center of the room was a big black motorcycle with a blue bird on the side. In another corner there was a wall lined with weapons of all different sorts. Smith picked up a grappling hook and looked at it before putting it back down. He walked to the motorcycle, looking at all the different buttons. A door on the other end of the room caught his eye, and he walked towards it. Opening it, he walked inside and stopped. In the middle of the room, and on all the walls, there were uniforms. The one in the middle of the room was a black spandex suit with a blue bird on the chest. There was also a matching mask. Smith walked up to the glass surrounding it and inspected the suit. A smile came over his face.

"That's interesting," he said, looking around him with that same smile on his face. "That's very interesting."

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

There were just too many of them. Kori was one of the best fighters in the world, but she couldn't keep it up for long against 10 different guys. Her ribs were bruised, and a few of them might have even been broken. She had cuts and scrapes on her arms and legs, and her clothes were dirty and tattered in some places. She was slightly limping too, from when one of them twisted her ankle. Sting was proving to be the hardest one to beat of the bunch. One of them lashed out at her and actually scratched her across the cheek. Kori thought that was a little strange coming from these big muscular guys, but she couldn't think about it for too much longer since they were starting to gain the upper hand again. Kori used one of the guy's momentum to swing him across the room. He hit his head against the wall when he landed, so Kori could safely bet he wouldn't be in the fight anymore.

"One down, nine more to go," she said to herself.

She flipped over one of them and threw him down on the ground before cracking his neck to the right with her foot, knocking him out. An arm wrapped around her neck from behind and Sting dragged her across the room, his other hand traveling down to her butt area. Kori was disgusted. He was an old man when she was just a teenager, and he _still_ did that kind of stuff. She rammed her fist into his "sensitive" area and twisted his hand behind his back when he doubled over in pain. Sting backhanded her across the face, sending her sprawling to the ground. Kori pushed the curly red tresses out of her face and only had a second to roll away when Sting's foot came down where her head was moments earlier. A chair leg came slamming into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her and pushing her back over one of the destroyed couches. Kori stood up and threw a fallen shard of glass. It hit its mark on one of the men's eyes, sending him screaming in agony out the window. Kori flipped one over onto his back and used his chest for a trampoline as she flipped over Sting's head, grabbing a small dagger from his hip as she landed. One of them charged at her, screaming like an idiot, and she wasted no time and stabbed him in the chest. She chucked it at another one coming her way and it hit him square in the throat. All of a sudden, blinding pain raced up and down her side. Kori looked down and saw blood flowing out of her wound. She turned around and saw Sting holding a shot gun. The barrel was smoking, and there weren't many guesses about where the bullet went. Grasping her side, Kori did a one-handed round off and kicked Sting in the face. He went flying back and slammed into a wall, dropping to the ground. A heavy boot slammed into her wounded side, forcing her to cry out and drop to her knees. She swung around and kicked the feet out from under her new attacker. He looked to be barely 17. Feeling slightly bad, Kori tried her best to knock him unconscious without hurting him too much. Unfortunately, that was all the opportunity another one needed to get back up again. He tried to push her out of the broken window, but she used his momentum against him and shoved him out instead. Unluckily for her, he grabbed her hand at the last second. And with one last scream, Kori was sent flying down to the ocean below.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Smith walked into the living room, surveying the damage around him. He heard a groan come from somewhere near the couch and found Sting sitting against the wall, rubbing his head. A few others were waking up too, but he noticed at least half of them wouldn't make it through the night. Smith sighed. She was one of the best. If there was one thing he could have regretted about the night, it was that they were actually fighting against her.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Coughing, Kori dragged herself onto the pier. She had no idea how she managed to survive the fall, but she was grateful. Her companion wasn't so lucky. At the moment, he was lying with a cracked skull on the bottom of the ocean. Kori pulled her soaked hair out of her face and climbed to her feet. Chancing a look back at her home, she saw Smith, Sting, and a few others standing in the window. They were looking right at her. She heard the clinking of keys and looked over to find a man walking down the pier. He looked like an inspector or janitor of some sort. As soon as he saw her, he gasped and came rushing to her side.

"Mrs. Are you alright? Oh-oh my gosh! You're bleeding! I'll call an ambulance!"

"No," Kori said weakly. "Take me…to your house."

The last thing Kori saw before her world went black was the face of her rescuer. He had brown hair and piercing green eyes. His face was contorted into one of anxiety. She wanted to reach out and tell him it was ok. She wanted to tell him she'd be fine as soon as she got a little bit of sleep, but her arms wouldn't lift. Then, as you know, her world went black.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"Sir," Sting said. "Shouldn't we go after her?"

"No, Mr. Sting," Smith said. "Let her go. I trust Kori won't come back here. Not only is it stupid, but she has nothing left for her here."

"Did you find the files?" Sting asked as they turned away and walked out the door. Smith's men followed after, some carrying their disabled comrades.

"No," Smith said with a grin. "I found something much, _much_ better."

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

He found something better! Please review! The one and ONLY, I Laugh at ur Pain


	6. Surveillance

Chapter 6­­—Surveillance

Richard watched with stony eyes as the coffin that "carried" his wife inside was pushed inside the black limo. Around him, weeping relatives and friends moved away and climbed into their cars, black umbrellas shaking free of water before they too were pulled inside. He didn't even care that his messy black locks were hanging in front of his face, or that the rain was drenching his jacket. His fists were clenched so tightly at his sides he could hear them cracking. Whoever had done this to her, was going to _pay_.

_"I'm sorry Richard," Detective Morison said. "We weren't able to find your wife."_

_"How," he said, his voice failing him. "Why would someone do this?"_

_"That's unclear to us right now, but I promise, we're going to do everything we can to figure that out."_

_Detective Morison called his men to him and together they left the house. Richard came and saw them to the door. Morison laid a heavy hand on Richard's shoulder and sighed._

_"We're going to bring justice to her killers, Richard. I promise."_

_The door closed and Richard developed into silent tears._

Richard sighed and willed himself to stay calm. If he lost control now, something would end up getting smashed. Luckily, he didn't have to wait long, because his cell phone chose that moment to ring. He glanced down at the caller ID with a puzzled gaze before he flipped the phone open.

"Hello?" he asked, nervousness running through his voice.

"Richard, its Morison. We found something."

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Jade eyes slowly fluttered open. Kori groaned and sat up, taking in her surroundings. Panic quickly settled in when nothing looked familiar to her, before everything caught up with her. She heaved a shaky sigh as tears welled up in her eyes. She had no home now. The smell of pancakes and bacon was coming from somewhere in the gigantic flat, making her stomach growl. Kori slowly climbed out of the comfortable bed, which she could only imagine belonged to her rescuer, and started wandering around. Passing by a mirror, she turned to look at her reflection and gasped. Almost her entire torso had been bandaged in white gauze, and her arms were covered in it too. Her hair was a tangled mess, and there were even a few leaves buried in the many knots. Her face had dirt smudges on it, and there was a long cut on her cheek that had been bandaged too. What a sight she must have been.

"Oh, I see you're up," a voice said, making her whip around.

Behind her stood her rescuer, a plate of bacon and eggs in one hand and pancakes in the other. She mustered up a small smile of thanks before taking the food from him and returning to the bed to eat. He watched her eat with a content smile, and didn't speak until she was finished.

"My name is Xavier," he said, holding out his hand. "But you can call me X."

"Kori," she replied, shaking his hand with a smile," Kori Anders."

"Do you…wanna get cleaned up?" he asked her.

Kori blushed and nodded, following him to the bathroom. If there had been one good thing to come from her current predicament, it was that she had Xavier on her side.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"What is it?" Richard asked, picking up the small scrap of metal with a raised eyebrow.

"What it is," Morison said, "is a foreign piece of metal. And it could help us figure out where your guys came from."

Richard nodded. He knew exactly what they were talking about. Of course he couldn't _say_ so, so he opted to look thoughtful about it instead.

"And how is it going to do that?" he asked.

"Well, if we can figure out the origin of the metal, then the rest is a piece of cake."

Someone came in and grabbed the piece of evidence out of his hand, making him scowl. Then they hurried off to some other place with it.

"So…was that all that you could find?" he asked casually, trying to mask the eagerness from his voice.

"I'm sorry Richard. But your guys were good. They took everything with them. All they left was broken glass and bullet shells."

"Well, couldn't you use those to find them?" Richard asked.

"No…we weren't able to read the markings on them. We figure they've been personally manufactured." Morison took a long sip of his coffee. "Either that, or they're in a different language."

Richard tried hard to mask his annoyance; if he had possession of those bullets, he could have figured out who they belonged to hours ago.

"Well, let me know if you guys find anything else."

He grabbed his coat and left the department.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

_One Year Later_

"Crap! Kori we gotta get out of here!" X yelled over at her, grabbing the bag of jewels from her hand.

Kori nodded and flip-kicked one of the guards before following X. The past year had been crazy for her. It had turned out X had been a top thief, and had been acquiring all his wealth from his secret profession. She had readily joined him, having no where else to go. And now she felt like she was living the old times again. Every once in awhile she would see tabloids with her picture in them. It had been a frequent heart pang for her when she had read them, thinking about what her husband must have been going through. Now she had learned to tune everything out. X had learned of her identity long ago, and had sworn to keep it a secret from the world. As long as everyone thought she was dead, her, Richard, and the files were safe.

"Kori! Come on!" he yelled again, ushering to the open door.

Kori nodded and picked up her pace, dodging guards that came her way and jumping over fallen bodies. Finally making it out the door, they both jumped across the rooftops to safety.

"That was awesome!" X said, sitting down and looking inside the bag. "Let's see…we've got…1, 2, 3, 4…7 thousand dollars right here!" he said, holding up a stack of money.

Kori smiled and sat down, joining him in counting the stolen money.

"Ow," she heard X say. Looking up, she found him with a bright yellow flyer stuck to his face. Laughing, she watched as he peeled it off and read it over. "Hey Kori, check this out."

Passing it over to her, she watched his anxious face before reading it. "Grand Diamond showcase at Gotham museum," she read aloud. Her heart gave a tiny lurch when she saw the museum's location.

"No," she said firmly, looking at his pleading face.

"Aww, Kori, come on," he said, sticking out his lower lip.

"No!" she said again, rolling the flyer up into a tiny ball and chucking it away. She heard a faint cry of pain from somewhere down on the street.

"But they say diamonds are a girl's best friend!" X said.

"Xavier," she warned. He put on his famous pout and looked up at her with pleading eyes. Her resolve cracked like an egg.

"Fine, we'll go," she sighed.

_Besides…how bad can it get. No one has to know I was even there. We can just get in, steal the diamonds, get out, and…Kori what are you thinking? Just what the hell have you gotten yourself into now?_

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"Relax, Kor, you look fine," Xavier whispered in her ear, draping an arm around her waste.

Kori heaved a sigh and looked up at him with a reluctant gaze.

"Sorry, it just doesn't feel right…being here," she said.

"I know how you feel, and I sympathize, _believe _me, I do, but you gotta relax!" he said with a laugh.

They were currently strolling through the streets of downtown Gotham, pretending to be newly-weds just taking a walk. And, to anyone around them, that's exactly what they looked like.

"Besides, it's hard to look for a place to stay if you're having anxiety attacks every five minutes."

"Stay?! X, I think you got a little confused with the plan. We're not _staying_ anywhere!" Kori said, stopping in her tracks.

"Well, it's kind of pointless to come down here and not enjoy it," X said.

"Well, we can enjoy it while we're in the museum, and then we can enjoy it from far, far away," Kori said.

"Kor, it _is_ called 'The City of Sunshine,'" Xavier said. "I'm finding us a place to stay, and that's final. Besides, how convincing will us newly-weds be if we're not going to rent a place?"

Kori nodded finally, with a shaky smile. On the outside, she might have looked happy, carefree. On the inside, she was screaming.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"Boss, we've got a little situation here," a scratchy voice spoke into the cell phone.

Mr. Smith shifted his position in his large leather recliner and awaited the bad news indifferently.

"And what is that?"

"She's back," Sting said into the receiver.

Smith's eyes widened; now here was something he didn't expect from her.

"Anything else?" he asked.

"She's with a guy," Sting said. "It's not Grayson, so he must have come with her."

A companion? My, she was full of surprises lately.

"The fledgling must have dragged her back here," Smith said. "And I think I know why."

Tacked up on his bulletin board was a yellow flyer depicting the very same words Kori had read the previous day.

"My dear Korina, it seems we have underestimated you again. I had thought for sure you would be stronger."

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Sting hung up his phone and looked across the street at the couple. His black shades were on, and his baseball cap was pulled low on his head. They wouldn't recognize him. Still, there was no point in risking it. He quickly pulled inside a random shop and waited for them to pass. Looking around him, he groaned; lingerie.

"So Kor, where would you like to stay?" X said. "The beach houses, uptown, downtown where the night life is, anywhere, you name it."

"Beach, definitely," Kori said. She was actually starting to enjoy herself.

"Alright, the beach it is," he said.

X whistled for a taxi and the two climbed in, not a care in the world.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Sting stepped out of the store he had been hiding in and took out his cell phone.

"Boss, they're on the move," he said into the receiver, hailing a cab of his own.

"Do you know their destination?" Smith answered him.

"No, but I'm guessing they'll be looking for a place to stay. This guy's a smart one, I'll give him that."

"Do you think it possible to make contact with him?" Mr. Smith said.

"Well, if anything, he's a thief, and thieves will always sell each other out for money."

"Make contact with the boy and propose an offer. If we have him on our side, there's only a matter of time before this all ends."

"Yes sir," Sting said, hanging up.

Looking up, he noticed they were headed for the beach. He smiled. This was proving to be a piece of cake.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"X, I must say, you outdid yourself. This place is perfect," Kori said, spinning around and flopping down on the bed.

"Well, what can I say? Perfection _is_ attracted to perfection," Xavier said, looking smug.

"Oh great, I've stroked your ego now," Kori said, rolling her eyes.

"So, my wife, what do you want to do today?" Xavier said. "The day is ahead of us, and so is the nightlife."

"We could always just hang out here for a bit," Kori said. "I have to take a shower anyway."

"Alright, you go clean up and I'll take care of the unpacking. Not that we brought much or anything."

Kori nodded and disappeared down a hallway, going into the bathroom. Xavier threw himself onto the couch, turning on the large plasma screen TV. Wrestling was on, that would entertain him for a bit. However his viewing was quickly disturbed when the screen fuzzed out and turned black.

"What the hell?" he asked, poking at the buttons on the remote.

The screen fuzzed out once more before turning on again, and he saw the dark silhouette of a man.

"Red X," the man spoke. "That is your name, correct?"

Xavier jumped up from the couch, glaring at the screen. "Who the hell are you and how do you know who I am?" he growled.

"Relax, boy, we mean you no harm. It has come to the attention of me and my associates that you harbor a female companion by the name of Korina Anders."

Xavier narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Yes, what about her?"

"She has something that belongs to me, and I want it back."

X suddenly broke out into a scolding smile.

"So she stole something from you?" he asked. "Look, in case you haven't noticed, I'm not much of a do-gooder. I don't care what she stole from you. I'm just glad she had the decency to snuff out the bastards like you."

"We will make you an offer for you cooperation."

"No offer of yours is ever going to-"

"23.5 billion dollars."

X stopped mid-sentence and gazed up at the man with wide eyes. "Come again?"

"We make you a cash offer of 23.5 billion dollars for your service."

"And just what kind of service is that?" X asked, once again suspicious.

He thought he saw the man smile.

"We need you to bring her to us, or if she refuses, kill her."

Xavier glanced back at the hallway where Kori had disappeared. He returned his stony gaze to the TV screen.

"Sorry, but I'm not accepting your offer."

"Not even for the money?" the man asked, sounding slightly surprised. X grinned.

"Not for all the money in the world."

"If that is your choice, then fine, but my offer stands for three days. If by the third day you change your mind, here is my address."

Something clicked near the door and he spun around. A letter was lying on the ground. He swiveled back around to face the man.

"We'll keep in touch, I'm sure," the man said.

"Any name to call you by?" X asked.

"Smith. Nothing more, nothing less."

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"Damnit," Smith said, pounding his fist against the table, knocking over his two whiskey glasses. The bar tender came by and swept them up, carrying the broken glass away.

"Didn't go exactly as planned, did it boss?" Sting said with a chuckle.

"Mr. Sting, why do you think I employed you all those years ago?" Smith said.

Sting sat silently, knowing what was to come.

"I employed you because you didn't think! Do you wish to be relieved of your duty now?" Smith growled.

"No sir," Sting said.

The bar tender came back to the table, two fresh whiskey glasses in hand.

"Get me a vodka, double-shot, straight," Sting said.

The bar tender walked away.

"Mr. Sting, why do you even bother taking me to such places?" Smith asked, massaging his temples.

They were currently sitting in Club Extrinsic, located in uptown Gotham. Scantily-clad girls danced across the floor, and men hollered and wolf-whistled at the most attractive.

"Because you need to get out more," Sting said with a grin, downing his whiskey.

Smith glanced around, a helpless expression on his face, until his cobalt grey eyes settled on two dancing females. Long red tresses. Green eyes. Long legs and slender waists. Smith smiled and nudged Sting. The two women looked in their direction and winked flirtatiously. Smith rose from his seat and began walking in their direction.

"Mr. Sting, I believe we've found ourselves a back-up plan."

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"X, something bothering you?" Kori asked.

Xavier had been quiet during their dinner, glancing up at her every few minutes.

"No, nothing," Xavier said, mustering up a smile.

"Are you sure?" Kori asked. "You know you can tell me anything."

Xavier smiled and leaned forward. His warm lips touched hers before he had even begun to realize what he was doing. Kori gasped aloud, causing him to pull away sheepishly. He glanced down at his food, his cheeks slightly flushed and his heart heavy. He didn't even bother looking up when Kori left.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"Richard?" Morison asked. "I don't know how to explain this to you, but that piece of metal was stolen from the lab last night. Whoever stole it was good. I'd bet my money it was the same guys that…well, you know."

Richard sighed and nodded. He knew exactly what Morison meant.

"I'm sorry Richard. I wish we could figure this out, but as of now all we've got are dead leads. I'm not sure if this case is worth dealing with. It's out of our hands. I offer my best condolences, but that's all I can do. I really _am_ sorry Richard."

Detective Morison opened his umbrella before stepping off into the rain. Richard slammed the door shut in frustration and headed towards his office. Pulling back the book and opening the secret passage, he walked down the cold stone stairs with a determined, heavy stride. Since the detective was an asshole and the police squad was useless, it was time to take matters into his own hands. While some part of him realized he should have done that in the first place, he had to give them credit; at least they _tried._

Pulling on his suit and loading himself up with gadgets, he climbed on his motorcycle. The cave door opened and he was off into the night. And God help whoever got in his way now.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

It wasn't until 1:00a.m. that Richard finally pulled back into the cave. Nothing. He had found absolutely nothing. None of the druggies down at the docks knew anything about what was going on, nor did they care. As long as their asses weren't paying for it, the frickin queen of England could shave her head and pronounce herself gay. And no one else knew anything more than that either. Frankly, the whole entire thing was pissing him off to hell and back, and he was getting tired of it. Whoever was behind everything was smart, and had to have a lot of connections. Some sort of base for operations. But what had he found? Nothing. Angrily, Richard climbed the stairs back into reality and headed for the kitchen to make a midnight snack. On the way, something by the door caught his eye.

It was a package. Plain, no return address, not even _his own_ address was on it, and obviously hand-delivered. The only thing remotely noticeable about it was the phrase written on the front.

_'For all your troubles, hope this is worth it. A friend.'_

Raising an eyebrow, he ripped it open carefully, and found the object inside to be…a video tape. Now more than a little confused, he sat the wrapping down on the table and popped the tape into the VCR. Turning on the TV, he could have sworn he stopped breathing.

There was Kori, climbing out of the water and onto the docks. A lump developed in his throat when he got a good look at her. Sopping wet and covered in scratches, she rolled onto her knees and began coughing up water. Using a lamp post for support, she stood up, favoring her right leg. Richard could barely breathe. A figure climbed out of the water behind the un-suspecting Kori, clad in a black leather suit and striking red hair. She pulled a dagger from her waist and shoved it right through Kori's back. Richard involuntarily uttered a gasp. He watched as his wife went limp in the woman's hands and was shoved off the dock, lost in the black water.

**"5:09:18. End of Dock Camera Footage 8/21/07"**

And that was it. Richard had subconsciously fallen to his knees during the video. He looked at the tape cover again, and noticed something was written on that too.

_'Here's a new lead.'_

Richard willed himself to stand up and played back the tape, pausing when his wife's murderer came into the lamp light. He watched in growing fury as the act was re-played. This woman, whoever she was, killed his wife. And for that, she would die.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"Do you think this will work?" Sting asked.

"Of course. Those two proved to be beautiful actors. It's only a matter of time before he starts hunting down his own wife, thinking her to be her own murderer. Can you imagine that? Him avenging the death of his lover, and instead killing her himself! Of all the things ironic in life, Mr. Sting, I find this one to be particularly amusing. We shall keep a monitor on the two. And I assure that by the end of the Grand Diamond Showcase, our little Korina will be no more."

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

**Sorry it took so long to write, but it's long so it took a long time to write it. Thank you to everybody that reviewed and plz review this chapter. BTW it is 12 chapters in word… so this is going to be a long chappie. Plz review!**

**The one and ONLY, I Laugh at ur Pain**


End file.
